While I have definite concerns about the way our school system is headed, I did find your title "Soothe The Savage Beast", to be inappropriate and vile. I can not concur or relate to the choices that Mr. Geryk is making in his communications online. However, I have to wonder how you would respond to the same title or comment being assigned to your family member(s). Probably not too positive and maybe emotionally charged as these acts of his appear as well.

If you're not being bashed Larry, your not doing your job. I don't always agree with you but I respect your opinions. As far as Amherst being a hell hole, if it "sucks" that bad Mr Geryk, feel free to take your family and leave. It will be much better for us.

Anyway, I didn't think Larry was calling Maria a savage beast when he made that the title of his post. I thought that was a reference to the moose in the picture. (Not that the moose looked especially savage...)

I received a similar, attacking letter from Mr Geryk the same night for liking a post on Facebook criticizing the survey. I was initially upset then slowly began to feel bad for him. He is clearly unable to handle the stress of any criticism of his wife's handling of the schools. And while he is not justified for his choice of outlet, we need to remember to stay away from attacking one's character and focus on the real issue- the policies and programs that affect our students.

I was not contacted by Mr. Geryk a few nights ago, but I have been on the receiving end of his venomous email/msg attacks previously & it is not a pleasant place to be. I know a number of other people who have received such messages as well over the years (including a few nights ago) since his wife became superintendent -- perhaps we should start a club. Usually these messages seems to be because someone questions or says something critical about her leadership or something going on in the schools. He is definitely not the best person she could have for PR.

Each time I receive such messages or hear of others getting them, I can't help but wonder if the community would be responding differently to these attacks if the superintendent was a man, & the one writing these messages their spouse. It is pretty outrageous behavior to see from the spouse of the highest paid official in our town, & it's surprising to me that it continues to be okay.

Exactly Becky, except he is justified in using the same forum you used to attack his wife's character to contact you to tell you it sucks. And we need to make sure that the young children we are teaching each day don't see their teachers and leaders on the internet, being immature, making false, unfounded accusations about the other grown-ups in the community, attacking their character. For a teacher to announce publicly online near the end of a successful school year that the reason surveys will require names is so no critical evaluations will be received, is absurd.

Be a mature grown-up, sign your name, and use the survey to say anything want critical of the schools, talk to a counselor if you have deep fears of retaliation from the evil leadership for being constructive and critical with your assessment, and I'm sure no one will struggle to handle what is said about the superintendent. But most importantly please make sure you don't bring your negativity and character attacks each day into the school my kid and his friends go to.

anon@8am: you don't even know what (if anything Becky?) wrote about his wife. For all you know, it could have been minor and just a plain, simple criticism of her policies (and not personal). For all you know, his attack could very well have been over the top. Really, people wonder why folks hesitate to include their names on surveys? Especially if they have a child with special needs, whose supports (and IEP implementation) are pretty much at the discretion of the central office?

I have sympathy for Ms Geryk's position. It seems no matter how many new administrators are hired, how many new initiatives are started, and the vast school budget, the quality of the MS and HS continues to decline. It must be very scary and frustrating. This reality has nothing to do with particular community members' perceptions (ie, their "negativity" has not brought about this situation, any more than praying for world peace affect violent conflict/war).

Has the print media covered this story lately? (or ever?) Sure, there is certainly more important, more significant news, but the fact these attacks by the spouse of such a high-profile Amherst official continue year after year is noteworthy as well.

He has attacked my spouse verbally numerous times over the internet. He was also the aggressor in a road rage incident involving a member of my family. The man has serious issues and needs to seek counseling.

Maria is the highest paid PUBLIC official in town. The criticism Kurt overreacted to (at a minute or two before midnight) was simply a woman (I repeat "woman") giving her honest opinion about a public issue to which she has a vested interest as both taxpayer and parent.

Sorry. Why take a chance exposing one's true identity. The last boss I argued with fired me. So much for the importance of bringing to light a diversity of ideas. We celebrate diversity so long as it's diverse skins. The Least important thing of all. So, I'd like to criticise, but need to pay landlord. For me, the necessities come first.

The adult way to respond to the school's invitation to take part in the survey would be to take time, think, offer honest and open opinion and criticism based in facts and data or anecdotes. Getting online to make a quick quip, whether it's a cynical insinuation about why the format was chosen, or a vague implication about the school leaders' abiltites and intelligence, is 8th Grade Mean Girl online sniping.

The criticism about Ms. Geryk is always about her job performance. I haven't read anything personal. Do the spouses of the other dept. heads do this? Does Mrs. Mooring search out people to berate if they say the DPW isn't run well? Mrs. Musante up all night defending her husbands funding decisions? I didn't think so.

Larry, Calling someone a "Cowardly Anon Nitwit" on your blog comments, while making the case that the Superintendent's survey did not have an anonymous component in your previous "Savage Beast" post, is kind of odd.

I understand. My point at 11:25 was simply that however well thought out, the fact that you are critical is the kiss of career death. Indeed, a difference of opinion can easily get you labeled a "hater." How do you feel about Common Core? Ugh . Prob'ly shouldn't go there.

well, yeah, unless it's about the fact that she dies her hair, or her choice of clothing, or the way she smiles, you know, the same stuff we'd evaluate town manager musante on... (all three are actual critiques that have been offered to the superintendent online. put it in the survey, people.)

How in the world did Alli McD believe that her online facebook evaluation of the superintendent's performance would be received by the superintendent or the SC? Does she really not get what they are asking for? I know they are looking for more formal evaluations than the "quick quip" on facebook. Surely she knows that, she's a professional woman.

It's either that she thought that the criticism would be received, and it was her form and style of an evaluation, or she was being an online mean-girl, doing her "evaluation" among like-minded meanies in the form of insinuation and insult.

Actually I believe she did fill out the formal online survey sent to her by the Superintendent, and submitted it using her name.

The "quick quip" did not occur on Facebook, it occurred on my article/post suggesting the survey was flawed because it did not allow Anon responses. Maria's husband Kurt took it upon himself to use Facebook to try to intimidate and silence her.

Unless someone gets the info from the SC or something, the requirement (request?) for a name on the survey could have come from either source (Superintendent or SC). For example, I could imagine a reason for the SC to require names is to avoid the (perception that) Ms Geryk (or her staff) stuffed the ballot box with stellar reviews. On the other hand I rather doubt this possibility as I suspect that SC members will NOT be provided with names along with the their survey responses. I suspect that the central office will claim confidentiality (appropriate or not) and remove names. It wasn't even clear to me from the SI email, who this survey is for? The Amherst School Committee? The Regional School Committee? Both?

Anon 2:13 pm:AliMcD just made a quick comment on her thoughts after seeing the survey. I am sure that she did not intend for these comments to be considered an evaluation of the superintendent & her staff. She just expressed a quick opinion, & perhaps she is now questioning now putting her name to her comment & invoking the wrath of Mr. Geryk & all this attention. There is a reason that people like to stay anonymous in their comments, & this is one of them. Plus there are many forums (such as editorials, letters to the editor, blogs, etc.) where when people express their opinions, it is not considered part of an evaluation; it's just their opinion.

The reality is research (solid peer-reviewed research published in journals, & perhaps even from some of the educational professionals that the ARPS administration consults with) shows clearly that survey results are impacted by whether or not responses are anonymous or not, & often not in a good way in terms of learning what people actually think (for a survey on perceptions) or what people actually do or have done (for a behavior survey).

When I read AliMcD's initial comment (the one for which she was so viciously attacked), I read it to mean that Ms McD thought that the survey's requirement of people including their names with their responses was not part of a nefarious plot to limit naysayers (as so many others had suggested), but perhaps just a coding error. Again here is what she wrote: "Funny, I just assumed survey coding ineptitude on their part. The survey itself was basic plug-n-play questionnaire writing, so I find it hard to imagine any ulterior motive for asking for names."

Such a comment doesn't not in any way warrant the kinds of attacks that she has faced since from Mr. Geryk & others.

I always laugh when I hear people say there needs to be a "conversation" about something. We don't want to converse. We want to scream at and drag each other down. Whoever does this loudest, wins, of course. (We think we can actually convince the other side to apologize and amend their lives.)

Actually, what Alli McD said was that she assumes the superintendent is inept and has limited capabilities. No doubt, she and a few other "professional" ladies were getting into a little cabal style bashing of another professional woman in town, making dark insinuations about her motives and her intelligence.

I'm glad someone stood up to the people who perpetuate that kind of negative behavior, it is a bad example for our kids, and standing up to the m,ean girls is a good example. I also think contacting the people privately who were taking part in the bashing, as opposed to doing what Alli McD did (immediately send the juicy email to Larry Kelley to make a circus out of the whole thing) showed a slight bit more maturity and integrity.

She wanted me to see the obnoxious Facebook message (not email) sent to her around midnight, and I was the one who requested permission to publish. Because the best way to deal with bad behavior is to shine a light on it.

I'm glad she sent it to you and that you brought it to the light of day. It is long past time for Kurt to stop this behavior. He has bullied way to many people and said much nastier things than he accuses them of. I recall him having it out with a Republican reporter on your page once, so the media is aware of this too.

I still wonder, because I question the abilities you have to make that kind of judgement appropriately, Larry. For example, you are on record as standing strong behind a cop who has broken serious laws, yet you've gone out of your way to denigrate and humiliate an individual who sits quietly on a street corner holding signs critical of the use of tax-dollar funded war efforts overseas. You get all buddy buddy with a guy who gets on your blog to call a school administrator a "bitch" and say that "no one likes her", but when someone writes a private message to someone calling them negative and non-constructive, you are up in arms over the obnoxiousness of it. You're consistent, I'll give you that, but your ability to judge character and actions is clouded by subjective opinions and fraught with contradiction.

I definitely don't depend on you in the least to judge a person's "stand-up"ed-ness, but thanks anyway.

There is very little I can say about the husband in this story BUT the personal comments about the Superintendent's appearance are disgusting. Any discussion connected to those comments just shows that the author has nothing valid to say and is big time insecure. Mean people suck.

There is very little I can say about the husband in this story BUT the personal comments about the Superintendent's appearance are disgusting...

When the current superintendent was getting ready to do her public interview for the position, one of our school committee members who would be making the decision about hiring or not hiring her -- a woman who teaches college classes about body image -- warned our community members, in writing through the local newspaper, to remember that "this is not a bathing suit contest."

I am neither requesting nor want an apology, but Kurt was also way over the line in insinuating that I considered Maria G attractive or anything other than an insult to my profession -- someone lacking the education, judgment and professionalism that one would expect of someone in such an august position.

What IS body image? A college course? I musta missed that one. I did once take a course called "Women and Sociology." The professor asked that the men who registered for the class kindly not attend as it would make the women "uncomfortable." U of Minn. All we had to do was submit a paper. Mine was titled "Can You Imagine The Outcry If A Male Teacher Excluded Women From Class." I hope nobody flunks "Body Image." The make-up test is a bitch.

We have a public record of him harassing if not threatening two different women.While APD files are not public, the APD (hopefully) has access to it's own files and can act on what is in them -- and we don't know how much more there is as well.

Let me clarify: As a weapon, a motor vehicle can be every bit as lethal as a firearm, and hence I ask what really is the difference of using a motor vehicle to intimidate and/or terrorize another (i.e. "road rage") and using a firearm?

" He was also the aggressor in a road rage incident involving a member of my family."

If this is true, why does it not meet the criteria of "Danger to Others"? That combined with the documented things in his electronic communications -- well, I know what I was taught to do upon seeing that alone...

Kurt invited Aldis Flint and Tom Valle for coffee via facebook messaging, so that Aldis could have a chance to say to Kurt what he says about him on facebook face to face ... no reply yet after 3 days. I think Kurt also wanted to discuss with Tom the AFD's unconditional support for every action the cops took the day of the Blarney Blowout.

Funny because Tom has always suggested online in the past that he welcomes anyone getting in touch to ask questions about AFD matters.

We could bring someone along to live tweet our chat or even film it for youtube. We could talk about me, being a firefighter, what it's like to be a cop in this town...

Both of them have been clear about their opinions online. What drives your ego to think they must meet with you in person to explain further? Do you imagine that you have some kind of influece over the people and running of this town?Scary.

I know of only 1 person who has put their actual name down on the superintendent's survey. A number of parents specifically cited that the superintendent's spouse & his tirades (& the possibility of being subjected to his attacks) as one reason they did not/will not put their name on the survey.

I am curious to see how many responses the survey gets, with names or no names, & if there will even be enough responses to draw any conclusions about how ARPS families & Amherst members feel about our schools, the superintendent, & the school committee. I doubt it. The survey closes in 5 more days.